Final Exam Info

Syllabus Text
Q: What will be on the final exam?
Q: Okay…. so what exactly does that mean?
Q: So how many points can I earn back?
Q: Do I have to answer every question on the final?
Q: Can I lose XP if I tried a question?
Q: Do I have to memorize how many points I have on each question already?
Q: I have an A in the class. Do I need to take the final?
Q: But I have an A and want an A+!
Q: I’m happy with my grade in the class, even though it’s not an A. Do I have to take the final?
Q: How do I tell you I want to take the final?
Q: I signed up fort he final exam! Where do I go?
Q: What do I need to bring?
Q: I signed up for the final, but changed my mind. Do I need to do anything?
Q: How long does it take to grade the final exam?
Q: I didn’t read anything on this page. Can you explain it to me?

Syllabus Text

The final exam in this course is an opportunity to show mastery of material that was previously missed on earlier quizzes. If a student has earned the maximum number of points on the three quizzes, they have a set of scores they are comfortable with, or if they already have an A in the course, the student does not (and should not) take the final exam. If a student wishes to take the final exam, they can earn back up to 100 XP total toward the available 300 XP from quizzes. We will create a custom final exam for each student based upon only the questions the student missed on the previous three quizzes. While it is possible to lose points on the final exam, this is a relatively rare occurance, usually stemming from wild guessing on questions. Students can come to either exam session, regardless of enrolled section.

Q: What will be on the final exam?

Over the course of the semester, I have assessed your mastery of various learning objectives through the quizzes, guided practice, and the project. While the project assess your technical abilities and your ability to work on teams, the quizzes assessed your understanding of fundamental material related to software engineering, software methodologies, and the different aspects of the five phases of development.

If you got a perfect score on a particular question on a quiz, then you showed mastery of that learning objective and you do not have to prove that mastery again.

If you did not get a perfect score on a particular question, then you have the opportunity to show me that you now have learned that material. That’s what’s on the final exam.

Q: Okay…. so what exactly does that mean?

Every student will get a custom exam that is made up of new versions of questions that they missed when they took the quizzes the first time. The questions are not the same, but they assess the same knowledge.

So, if you got a perfect 100 XP on Quiz 1, you won’t have any Quiz 1 material on your final. But if you lost 5XP on the “what are the five phases of development” question, then you’ll have a new version of that question on your final exam. In this instance, the new question might be about comparing and contrasting design versus implementation or perhaps something about which phase takes the longest (answer: maintenance). Not the same question, but same related material. Repeat this for the questions from Quiz 2 and Quiz 3 and that makes up your final exam.

Q: So how many points can I earn back?

Up to 100XP if you attempted all three quizzes when we took them in lecture. Some students who had medical emergencies and had to miss a quiz are taking their first attempt at a quiz and can make back more than 100XP because they never got a first chance at it.

Q: Do I have to answer every question on the final?

No, you do not. With any question you do not answer you are saying to me “I accept my previous score on this question” and no XP will be gained or lost.

But make sure you attempt enough questions to earn back what you need. For instance, if you need 50XP to get to the next letter grade, don’t attempt exactly 50XP worth of questions. Aim higher than that in case you don’t come through on something.

Q: Can I lose XP if I tried a question?

Yes, it is possible, but it’s pretty rare. Think about it this way - if you made a completely random guess at the question the first time and got half credit and tried it again and did worse, then you really never learned that material in the first place, so the new score is the “correct” one. That said, this only happens once or twice a semester and when it does happen, the answers are just so bad that something has to change. Do not trick yourself into not answering a question because of this. It’s almost always in your favor to try.

Q: Do I have to memorize how many points I have on each question already?

Nope! On your custom final, you will see something like this as the header for each question:

Question Q1-1: Phases of Development / 10 XP Max
Current Score: 7 XP / Can Earn: 3 XP

______ Attempting Question  /  ______ Skipping Question

Note that you can let me know here if you are attempting the question or not.

And at the top of the final exam will be something like this:

Total XP Available: 85 XP
XP to Next Grade Level: 35 XP

Q: I have an A in the class. Do I need to take the final?

Please do not take the final. That just adds work for me that doesn’t really “do” anything.

Q: But I have an A and want an A+!

[insert extremely grumpy professor face here] I’ll just note that A+s are very rare in my class.

Q: I’m happy with my grade in the class, even though it’s not an A. Do I have to take the final?

Nope!

Q: How do I tell you I want to take the final?

See the signup sheet right here and in the email that was sent out on Monday, Dec 4.

Q: I signed up fort he final exam! Where do I go?

The exam is in Rice 130, the same room we have class in.

Q: What do I need to bring?

A writing implement that is visible upon the page, but crayons are generally a bad idea. Also, remember how much XP you already have before taking the final. I won’t have that for you when you get here.

Q: I signed up for the final, but changed my mind. Do I need to do anything?

No, you do not need to do anything. Just don’t come.

Q: How long does it take to grade the final exam?

If you are just trying to go from a B+ or A- to an A, I can grade those as they are submitted the day of the final. If you are making up a quiz or have to attempt a bunch of questions, it takes longer. They should be graded in 24-48 hours or so.

Q: I didn’t read anything on this page. Can you explain it to me?

Go listen to the last 10 min or so of the lecture from Tuesday, Nov 21, at 11:00. I explained it all there. Again.